The candle has been the source of illumination since the memory of man runneth not to the contrary. In the last decade, in addition to being a source of illumination, candles have become highly decorative, being molded and/or carved into a variety of shapes and sizes and in a myriad of colors and color combinations. The development of suitable flame sustaining devices has not paralleled the development of candles as a functional and decorative illuminating device, and have, through the ages, remained little more than pieces of string or rope, or at the most, some cotton waste formed into a make-shift flame supporting device. Indeed, many candles are typically manufactured by dipping wicks into molten wax or tallow material.
An energy shortage which became a reality in late 1973, coupled with a gradual but discernible metamorphosis in life style and living habits has placed the self contained illuminating devices such as candles in a new, significant and highly important role in the every day life of today's family. However, even the most modern such illuminating devices is fraught with drawbacks which inevitably dampen the enthusiasm otherwise generated by such devices. For example, wick materials of prior art devices tend to burn, curl and otherwise become limp, making them hard to light and in some instances brittle and easily breakable in a burned area, therefore making the candle unrelightable. If the illuminating device is contained, as in the present improved device, known wicks tend to shrivel, and because they are limp, can not stand upright in a pool of molten wax or tallow and as a result, may literally flop over into the molten material causing a fire, or at the very least, extinguishing the flame and defeating the purpose of the device entirely.
The problem emphasized here, and obviated by the present invention, has been recognized by past innovators going back at least into the 1940's. Alexiade U.S. Pat. No. 2,324,753, for example, espouses a stiffener device which surrounds the wick, but it likewise severely limits the area from which the wick can draw flammable fluid to burn. Those such as Roberts in his U.S. Pat. No. 2,818,718 and later, MacDonald in his U.S. Pat. No. 3,385,084 attempted to reinforce the wick by wrapping it, but these makeshift solutions likewise fall short in their efforts to render the self contained illuminating device such as a candle, a truly utilitarian device. Not until the advent of the present improved wick device has it been possible for the candle to achieve the degree of sophistication which will permit it to become a useful, as well as decorative, household necessity.